NCJ Number
164448
Date Published
1993
Length
50 pages
Annotation
This case study of a controversy in Pennsylvania about the disposal of hazardous waste illustrates the linkages between organized crime and certain apparently legitimate businesses.
Abstract
This chapter recounts an attempt by a British-based rubbish company, Attwoods, led in part by Denis Thatcher, to open a landfill in a rural mountain community in Central Pennsylvania. Attwoods had entered the lucrative American garbage market by acquiring an American company, Industrial Waste Services, Inc., which had been implicated in racketeering activities. Attwoods' entrance into the town of Snow Shoe in 1988 touched off a small protest movement led by local residents who were worried about potential environmental hazards that a new landfill would bring to the area. Although environmentally sophisticated, the locals were unaware of the company's background. The bulk of this chapter presents findings from the author's research on Attwoods at the time of the controversy. The research revealed the criminal "milieu" within which the firms bought by Attwoods had operated and provided insight into a range of rubbish-related crimes. The findings show that certain resource-recovery operations were spawned if not captured early on by organized crime; this should be taken into account when considering so- called "new advanced technological" solutions to pressing environmental problems. 83 notes